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ARCHIVED - Why does Los Angeles exist?

Think about it:
- For most of our country's history it was nothing more than a small town out in the unsettled boondocks of the West Coast
- It wasn't a major port until relatively recently, when China and Japan began trading with us
- It has no other major natural resources
- It's in the middle of a [i]desert[/i]
And yet it has grown to be the second-largest city in the US, with over 17 million people. What caused such phenomenal growth in so short of a time? Thoughts?

[quote][b]Posted by:[/b] Grindstone
What about San Diego?[/quote]
I was just thinking that. It has nicer weather and is closer to Mexico. I wonder why it didn't become a boomtown.
And about the Hollywood idea - how can one industry create that big of a metropolis? By that logic, Washington DC should be just as big - all the politicians, lawyers, lobbyists, military leaders, aides, tourists, etc, would bring in sizable amounts of cash. Why wouldn't that influx of business turn the nation's capital into an urban sprawl? It all seems very random to me.
OK, let me get this straight. LA is there through a combination of:
- immigrants
- corporations
- the movie industry
- water resources
- the Gold Rush
- the Great Depression
Sounds plausible enough. Funny how so many unrelated events could create something so vast and important.
[Edited on 9/12/2005]

You have to understand that Los Angeles was overpopulated before the U.S. took California. Even before Mexico controlled it. It's basically a huge oasis in the desert. So native americans were first to populate. But that's not the point. Jobs, it brought people. First the gold rush, when there was no gold to be found left up north many started to move southward. Then the Great Depression came along and promised many jobs to the poor east. Well then Hollywood became big and many people wanted to be stars. And theres probably more I'm missing but this is mostly the foundation.

[quote][b]Posted by:[/b] Fabled Hero
[quote][b]Posted by:[/b] cmkrcs1
[quote][b]Posted by:[/b] Fabled Hero
Where else would we put the fruits and nuts?
-chumpzilla99[/quote]
San Fransisco?[/quote]
No, they're overpopulated. So they decided to make a place almost exactly the same. Hence, Los Angeles.
-chumpzilla99[/quote]
I can tell you're from the east coast just because you compared those two cities.
They aren't at all similar. San Fransisco is a hell of a lot nicer than Los Angeles.

[quote][b]Posted by:[/b] cmkrcs1
[quote][b]Posted by:[/b] Fabled Hero
Where else would we put the fruits and nuts?
-chumpzilla99[/quote]
San Fransisco?[/quote]
No, they're overpopulated. So they decided to make a place almost exactly the same. Hence, Los Angeles.
-chumpzilla99

It's because Los Angeles is so close to Mexico. They've set up a convinient place for the migrant workers to come get jobs and undermine California's economy. The workers save their money and move their whole families there. That's how it got so big.
[Edited on 9/12/2005]

[quote][b]Posted by:[/b] Jordan117
Seriously, people. It doesn't make sense if you think about it. Some cities, like Paris and Chicago and New Delhi have existed for much longer, and are still not as big. LA sprang out of nowhere in less than a century. What makes that particular patch of desert so special? Why is such a huge city located there?[/quote]
I belive I already answered your question.
[quote][b]Posted by:[/b] cmkrcs1
[quote][b]Posted by:[/b] Jordan117
What caused such phenomenal growth in so short of a time?[/quote]
Greedy capitalists and illegal immigrants.[/quote]

[quote][b]Posted by:[/b] cmkrcs1
[quote][b]Posted by:[/b] Jordan117
What caused such phenomenal growth in so short of a time?[/quote]
Greedy capitalists and illegal immigrants.[/quote]
HAhahahahahaha
sad....

Seriously, people. It doesn't make sense if you think about it. Some cities, like Paris and Chicago and New Delhi have existed for much longer, and are still not as big. LA sprang out of nowhere in less than a century. What makes that particular patch of desert so special? Why is such a huge city located there?

[quote][b]Posted by:[/b] cmkrcs1
Cuz dem terrerists is too pansy to nuke it.[/quote]
Hey watch out, bud, I'm a terrorist. We haven't nuked it yet because we're afraid the bomb might bounce off of the Lithosphere and blow up in the Stratoshpere causing world destruction. Us terrorists favor living over death, not just americans.